Article packaging system

ABSTRACT

Flexible packaging bags at a packaging station are air opened one at a time atop a stacked supply of bags held on a wicket, product being packaged is directed into each opened bag through product guide assemblies which extend part way into the bag and each product filled bag is pulled from the wicket to be conveyed from the packaging station.

United States Patent 91 Kupcikevicius et a].

[ ARTICLE PACKAGING SYSTEM [75] Inventors: Vytautas Kupcikevicius, Chicago;

Ernest T. Pedersen, Oak Lawn, both of Ill.

[73] Assignee: Union Carbide Corporation, New

York, N.Y.

22 Filed: Aug. 23, 1971 21 Appl.No.: 173,960

[52] US. Cl. 53/189, 53/385 [51] Int. Cl. B65b 5/04, B65b 43/36 [58] Field of Search 53/385, 29, 391, 53/189, 187; 206/57 A [56] References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 3,242,634 3/1966 Frydenlund 53/189 3,490,195 l/l970 Abramson.. 53/385 X 4/1968 Arvidsonu 53/391 Get. 9, 11973 2,673,016 3/1954 Gerbe 53/385 X 3,478,490 11/1969 Sylvester et a1. 53/385 X 2,770,084 11/1956 Rudennan 53/189 3,508,379 4/1970 Noyes et al. 53/385 X 3,312,339 4/1967 Million 206/57 A 3,412,522 ll/l968 Schorer 53/189 Primary Examiner-Travis S. McGehee Assistant Examiner-Horace M. Culver AttorneyPaul A. Rose and Maurice W. Ryan [5 7] ABSTRACT Flexible packaging bags at a packaging station are air opened one at a time atop a stacked supply of bags held on a wicket, product being packaged is directed into; each opened bag through product guide assemblies which extend part way into the bag and each product filled bag is pulled from the wicket to be conveyed from the packaging station.

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INVENTORS VYTAUTAS KUPCIKEVICIUS ERNEST T. PEDERSEN WW W 4M1.

ATTORNEY INVENTORS VYTAUTAS KUPCIKEVICIUS ERNES T T. PEDERSEN ATTORNE PATENTEDUBT w 3.763.627

SHEET 30F 3 INVENTORS VYTAUTAS KUPCIKEVICIUS ERNEST T. PEDERSEN ATTORNE 1 ARTICLE PACKAGING SYSTEM The present invention relates to a method and apparatus for sequentially opening flexible packaging bags one at a time from a stacked supply of bags, filling each opened bag with product to be packaged and removing the product filled bag from the stacked supply to permit opening and filling of the next bag and more particularly to a method and apparatus for bag filling operations which includes opening the bags automatically with an air stream, guiding products to be packaged into the opened bags with expandable product guide means while holding the stacked supply of bags to be filled by pressure on a wicket having legs which pass through holes in the lower ply of each bag in the stack down into wicket sockets in the apparatus and removing the product filled bag from atop the stacked bag supply by pulling it against the wicket legs to shear the bag material from the wicket holes through the bag lower ply open edge.

Industry has long sought to automate insofar as possible packaging operations involved in preparing products for the market. To the extent that a multiplicity or series of products are alike as to size, shape and weight, fuller automation of the packaging technique is attainable. ln the food packaging industry, however, particularly in the area of meat packaging, the products to be packaged frequently are not alike in a series as to size, weight and shape and tend less towards automation, more towards human handling and this, regrettably, where minimal human handling is a desideratum and the maintenance of strict sanitary conditions is essential. Astute packaging process planning, however, customarily results in the packaging of somewhat similar size shape and weight product articles during a given packaging operation sequence, at least to the extent that they can be packaged one at a time in bags of the same size and material from a bag supply source. This has led to the development and use of certain semiautomatic packagingmachines and techniques which require attendance and cooperation by human operators. US. Pat. No. 3,552,090 to Roberts et al. is illustrative of such semi-automatic apparatus. Known packaging apparatus and methods, however, have been less than completely satisfactory towards solution of the problems attending the handling and packaging of unlike products such as primal and/or process cuts of meat particularly in the area of minimizing handling of the products and the packaging material.

With this then being the state of the art, the present invention was conceived and developed with the object of providing a reliable and practical apparatus and method for the packaging of products, particularly food products and, even more particularly, meat products including process cuts and unprocessed primal cuts.

It is also a further and important object of the present invention to provide apparatus and method for packaging a continual series of products which vary from one to the other in size, shape and weight.

A still further object of the invention is to provide a packaging technique and apparatus which is as fully automated as practicallypossible and wherein only minimal human handling and attention is required.

These and other objectives and features of the invention will become more apparent in the light of the ensuing description and the drawings, wherein:

FIG. 1 is a side elevational view of apparatus according to the present invention showing a stacked supply of bags thereon with an inflated open top bag atop the stacked supply and a product in position to be inserted into the inflated open bag,

FIG. 2 is a plan view of the apparatus arrangement shown in FIG. 1 and FIG. 3 is a partial sectional view taken along the section designation 3-3 of FIG. 1.

In general, the present invention comprehends a method and apparatus for continually sequentially opening and filling flattened flexible packaging bags from a stacked and wicket held supply of bags, each bag having a lower ply provided with wicket holes and an upper ply clear of the wicket holes in the lower ply, comprising, in combination, an apparatus frame having an aft end and a fore end, a substantially horizontal top plate on said frame adapted to support the stacked supply of bags and a product filled top bag on the stacked supply of bags, a wicket having leg elements extending generally vertically through the wicket holes in each bag lower ply in the stacked supply of bags and a horizontal element joining the leg elements and bearing on the stacked supply of bags, wicket socket means adjacent the top plate towards the aft end of the apparatus frame disposed to receive and hold portions of the wicket leg elements subtending the stacked supply of bags, a housing rotatably supported on horizontal trunnionmeans at the aft end of the apparatus frame extending towards the fore end of the frame and adapted to move pivotally vertically on the trunnion means with respect to the frame, air blower means mounted in the housing having an air stream discharge directed towards the fore end of the apparatus frame, duct means communicating with the air stream discharge adapted to direct an air stream from the blower means into a bag on top of the stacked supply of bags to inflate said bag, said duct means bearing down vertically on at least a portion of the wicket, a substantially fiat platen on top of the housing means, product guide means mounted on the platen on top of the housing means adapted to enter part way into an open bag on top of the stacked supply of bags and thereby guide a product from the platen into the open bag and conveyor means disposed between the top plate and the fore end of the apparatus arranged and disposed to accept a product filled bag from the top of the stacked supply of bags and to convey said product filled bag from the apparatus. 5

Apparatus according to the present invention preferably includes a wicket having a horizontal center portion, an upwardly extending shoulder at each end of the center portion and a leg extending vertically downward from jeach shoulder through the wicket holes in each bag lower ply in the stacked supply of bags. This type of wicket is referred to herein as M-shaped.

The M-shaped wicket legs may also be provided with cutting edges disposed towards the aft end of the apparatus and located in the wicket legs above the horizontal center portion of the wicket.

The wicket socket means may be canted from the vertical to dispose the top of the wicket towards the aft end of the apparatus and the leg elements portions subtending the stacked and wicket held supply of bags towards the fore end of the apparatus whereby the stacked supply of bags is imbricated.

The pivotally mounted housing supporting the air blower means and the duct means may be provided with pressure force means adapted to maintain substantially constant bearing pressure of the duct means on said portion of the wicket.

Lifting cam means may be provided operable to raise and secure the housing on its trunnion means, clear of its operating position to permit loading the apparatus with a fresh supply of stacked bags.

In a preferred embodiment of apparatus according to the present invention, the product guide means is mounted on the top platen of the housing means with first pivot elements which permit movement of the product guide means towards the fore end of the apparatus into the inflated open bag on top of the stacked supply of bags and, simultaneously, outward expansion of the product guide means in a substantially horizontal movement while a product moves through the product guide means into the inflated open bag.

With reference to the drawings, a bag loading apparatus according to the present invention has a frame indicated generally as 11. A housing 13 is disposed at the top aft end of frame 11 and is pivotally mounted thereto by horizontal trunnions 15 so that the housing can move on the trunnions in a pivotal vertical movement with respect to frame 11. Housing 13 encloses and supports a motor driven air blower 17 having an air discharge at the fore end of the housing and is provided with a top platen 19 for supporting and handling a product 21, such as a piece of meat as shown in the drawings, to be bagged. The fore end of housing 13 is adapted to interchangeably mount various sizes of nosepiece 23 which effects transition and direction of the air flow from the blower l7 discharge at the fore end of housing 13 to a bag inlet. Each nosepiece 23 is provided with a centrally disposed open top upwardly tapering air duct 25 in which vertical longitudinally extending vanes 27 are secured, the number of vanes depending on the width of the duct 25. The vanes 27 provide directional control of the bag inflation air and their top edges, which are substantially on a plane with the open top of air duct 25 and the housing top platen 19, provide support for a product moving through the apparatus.

A bearing means 29 is provided at each outer top fore edge of the housing 13 to provide for pivotally mounting a pair of product guide assemblies 31 which direct the product being bagged into proper directional orientation and alignment with an inflated bag opening. Each product guide assembly comprises an upper blade 33, a lower blade 35 and a pivot arm 37. The blades 33,35 are selectable in size so as to accommodate various sizes of product and related nosepiece air duct widths. Towards the same purpose, pivot arm 37 is provided in varying selectable lengths or, alternatively, may be of adjustable length such as for example by means of a telescoping slotted bar secured on a companion bar by a holddown nut or the like. Blades 33,35 are assembled at their respective aft ends to an upright end of pivot arm 37 by means of a pin assembly 39 which permits pivotal vertical movement of the upper blade 33 with respect to the lower blade 35. The outboard end of pivot arm 37 is mounted on hearing means 29 with a vertical shaft 41 which is spring loaded rotationally so as to urge the fore edges of the product guide assembly blades towards each other centrally of the apparatus. In order to prevent the fore edges of the product guide assembly from contacting and possibly damaging each other, rotational stops may be provided on the shafts 41 or, alternatively, any suitable stop means such as posts or checks to limit the arcuate travel of the pivot arms 37.

The fore end of frame 1 1 is provided with a multiplicity of parallel rollers 43 disposed transversely of the apparatus and arranged to support the closed end portions of stacked bags 45 and the product filled bags as they move off the fore end of the apparatus. The rollers 43 are removable to facilitate cleaning, also, and importantly, to provide space, by the selective removal of one or more rollers, to accommodate the closed ends of the stacked bags 45 in drape fashion over a last supporting roller thereunder as shown in the drawings. This arrangement has been found very advantageous inasmuch as the closed ends of the bags 45 are a slight bit thicker, due to heat sealing ridges or sometimes reinforcement, than the two ply bags themselves and when the bags are stacked horizontally and imbricated the closed ends form somewhat of an obstacle to the easy transfer movement of bagged product from the top of the bag stack onto the conveying rollers. In addition, the somewhat thicker closed end of the next lower bag atop the bag stack tends to be pulled uninflated and unfilled away from the wicket by the product filled bag being transferred from atop the stack. The selective removal of rollers 43 according to bag length and bag stack height allows the bag closed ends to drape downward over a last supporting roller and obviates these difficulties.

Intermediate of the rollers and nosepiece 23 mounted on the fore end of housing 13 a top plate 47 is secured to frame 11 and is adapted to mount a wicket platen 49. Wicket platen 49 is provided at its aft end with a socket boss 51 containing an array of wicket sockets 53 drilled or otherwise formed in parallel relationship to each other at paired spacings to accommodate the legs 57 of assorted widths of wickets 55. Stacked bags 45 are loaded onto the bagging apparatus and secured thereto by a wicket 55 of proper size to fit holes provided in the bag lower plies at the open end and to match the appropriate wicket sockets pair in socket boss 51.

Uninflated flat stacked bags 45 are loaded onto the bagging apparatus with open ends towards the aft end of the apparatus and closed ends towards the fore end, supported by the wicket platen 49, the frame top plate 47 and the rollers 43 with the bag closed ends draped downward into the space provided by the selective removal of one or more of the rollers. Each bag has an upper ply 59 and a lower ply 61 and may be formed for instance from flattened plastic or the like tubing. A bag style which is particularly suitable for use with the present invention is made by continual arcuate cutting across a flattened extruded polyethylene or the like film tubing and heat sealing one arcuate cut on each section of cut tubing to form a bag bottom. The upper ply is cut back at the open end of each bag to expose a portion of the lower ply 61 in which wicket holes 63 are provided through which the wicket legs 57 of a wicket 55 pass and extend down into the wicket sockets 53 and thus secure the stacked bags to the apparatus. In the manufacture of bags for automatic or semiautomatic packing a great deal of attention has been directed to the size, shape, location and manner of forming the bag wicket holes in the bag lower ply. What has been sought by industry for use with known bagging apparatus is a bag with wicket holes capable of keeping the bag in place while it is being opened by inflating air or otherwise and being filled with a product being packaged, with the product going all the way into the bag to contact the bag bottom and at the same time not interfere with the opening and filling operations. Furthermore the wicket holes and their holding arrangement should be such that each product filled bag is readily removeable from atop the bag stack with clean residue-free tears from the bag holding mechanism and without pulling or otherwise disturbing the remaining bags in the bag supply stack. Towards achieving these ends, bags have been produced with variously shaped and spaced wicket holes made by several methods. Bags have been made for example with heat pierced wicket holes, the heat piercing inherently making for a reinforced hole perimeter in a bag material and on some instances with reinforcement of one sort or another added around the wicket holes. Such bags hold well during the opening and filling operations but cause problems in being pulled off the wicket or whatever holder because of the relatively high force needed to initiate the tear through a heat formed ridge or other reinforcement at the hole edge and because of the dragging action of these ridges or the like on the next lower bag in the stacked supply. Other bags have been made with simple punched wicket holes without reinforcement at the hole perimeters and while these overcome to a greater or lesser degree the problems encountered with bags having reinforced wicket hole edges, they do not hold as well on the retaining apparatus during the opening and filling operations and also tend to tear irregularly in the bag removal step, frequently leaving scraps of bag material which interfere with the packaging operation. In efforts to effect clean straight tears and avoid making scraps of the bag material, bags with pear shaped or tear drop shaped punched holes have been used with the narrow or pointed area of the hole bearing against the holding wicket legs. While accomplishing the desired end to at leastsome extent however these bags do not hold as well during the opening and filling procedures since relatively high shearing stress concentrations develop at the points of contact between the wicket legs and bag wicket hole narrow edges. The present invention, as will be appreciated from the ensuing description, obviates all of the aforedescribed problems by providing a bag holding wicket arrangement which retains the bags during opening and filling without any dependency on bag wicket hole edge to wicket leg contact.

The wicket 55 is shown in detail in FIG. 3 of the drawings and is seen to be generally M shaped with a straight center portion 65 which turns upward at each end to define shoulders 67 which turn downward at their outer extremities to define the wicket legs 57. When the bags are in place and secured through holes 63 by the wicket 55 on the apparatus, the fore end of the air duct 25 of nosepiece 23 which defines a presser plate 69 engages and bears on the wicket. Presser plate 69 may engage either the shoulders 67 of the wicket 55 or the center portion 65 thereof, it being of importance,

only that the center portion 65 intimately contacts over substantially its full horizontal length and bears vertically down on the lower ply of the top bag of the stacked supply of bags 45. In some instances in practicing the invention, where it may be desirable to stock a minimal number of nosepieces 23 and wickets 55 for use with the apparatus, it is possible to design these parts for bearing by the presser plate 69 on only the wicket center portion 65 and not at all on the shoulders 67 and thus permit the use of presser plates having several discrete bearing lengths with a single wicket having a center portion length slightly greater than the greatest of the presser plate bearing lengths. The pivoted weight of the housing 13 and its related components is then applied to the wicket and transmitted as pressure on the layered lower plies 61 of the stacked bags 45. It is to be understood that the apparatus of the invention is particularly adapted to restrain the lower plies only, of a stack of flattened lipped bags in a portion of the bags lower plies spaced from the wicket holes in the bags. The ply restraining force is substantially constantly medially deployed on the lower ply of each uppermost bag as the bags are depleted one-by-one from an initial full stack of bags. Thus, the constant restraining force deployed on the lower ply of each uppermost bag permits opening the mouth of the bag to a shape predetermined by the relation between the M wicket proportions and the bag perimeter. It permits seating the product being packed completely to the bags bottom. Thus the force required to initiate removal of the bag from the legs of the wicket is independent of the force required to overcome the tear resistance of the wicket hole edge to the wicket leg. The pressure force on the stacked bags is adjusted and controlled automatically during operation of the apparatus. In a particular embodiment a downwardly directed deadweight force 14 is employed which is the resultant of a predetermined imbalance of the weight of housing 13 cantilevered about trunnions 15. Force 14 is the resultant of a counterclockwise imbalance as viewed in FIG. 1. The deadweight force 14 can be adjusted to provide a different restraining force for each of the various types of bag and/or wickets employed. Typical force adjustment means shown comprise weights 71 connected by a line 73 to a bracket attached to housing 13 with the weighted line passed over a pulley 72 supported by a pulley bracket 74 attached to the frame 1 1, the weights 71 being selected to counterbalance the force 14 to the extent necessary for a specific type of bag and wicket being used. The same counterbalancing effect can be obtained as readily with a tensionable spring connected between the housing bracket 75 and the frame 11 with spring tension adjustment provided through an adjustable eye bolt or the like. Other arrangements are also possible. If there are no critical space limitations, the housing 13 may be made somewhat longer and thus balance more evenly on the trunnions towards attainment of the requisite force 14.

It is preferable that the horizontal level of the housing top platen 19 be above the horizontal level of frame top plate 47 and the wicket platen 49 by a distance of about half the height of a full bag stack. This not only assists in the application ofrelatively constant pressure on the wicket during an operating sequence through a bag stack but also minimizes the angular change or slant of the housing top platen 19 from start to finish of a single operating sequence. Thus at the time of initial operation the housing 13 and related componentry is tilted upward from the aft end towards the fore end of the apparatus. Midway through a bag stack sequence, the housing 13 is relatively horizontal with top platen 19 level and above the plane of frame top plate 47 and wicket platen 49 by a distance equal to about half the original height of the bag stack. At the end of a sequence, housing 13 and related componentry is tilted downward from the aft end towards the fore end of the apparatus.

A cam 77 provided with an operating handle 79 is rotatably mounted on a cam bracket 81 attached to frame 11 and when rotated clockwise on its shaft 83 from the position shown in FIG. 1 of the drawings, elevates the fore end of housing 13 from it normal or operating position on trunnions l and secures it in elevated position when the high point on the cam arcs through its top dead center position to permit and facilitate bag loading.

Operating the apparatus according to the present invention involves first tilting up the fore end of housing 13 by rotating cam 77. Stacked bags on a wicket 55 are placed on the apparatus with the wicket legs 57 inserted in appropriate wicket holes 63 and cam 77 is rotated to lower the fore end of housing 13 to the operating position where presser plate 69 at the fore end of the nosepiece 23 air duct 25 engages the wicket 55 center portion 65 and/or shoulders 67. Weights 71 are adjusted according to the bag and related wicket size and to the height of the bag stack to provide substantially constant and even pressure on the stacked bags lower plies as the bag stack height decreases during operation. With the bags in place and the housing 13 and related parts in the operating position, the lower ply 61 of the top bag is held securely to the bag stack by the center portion 65 of wicket 55 and the entire bag stack is held securely to the apparatus with the wicket legs 57 passing through the bag wicket holes 63 and into the wicket sockets 53. The top bag upper ply 59 rests adjacent the discharge end of air duct 25 and the top bag inflates when air blower 17 is started.

An operator guides and directs a product 21 to be packaged, such as for example a piece of meat, on the housing top platen 19 between the product guide assemblies 31 which pivot outwardly from centrally of the apparatus about shafts 41 due to the impinging force of product 21. Simultaneously, the guide assemblies upper blades 33 are pivoted upwardly from the lower blades 35 on pin assemblies 39 by the impinging product to accommodate the vertical size of the product being packaged. The operator pushes the product being packaged on through the product guide assemblies on housing top platen 19, along the top edges of the air duct vanes 27, into the inflated top bag of stacked bags 45 and into contact with the closed end or bottom of the bag. The bagged product is then pulled in its bag from the bag stack, tearing the bag lower ply against the wicket legs 57 from the bag wicket holes 63 to the lower ply outer open edge, and slid onto rollers 43 for transport to further processing steps such as air evacuation, tying, labeling and the like.

Numerous alternative modes and apparatus structures for practicing the present invention within the scope and spirpt thereof will, in the light of the foregoing disclosure, undoubtedly occur to persons familiar with the art. It is therefore intended that the description be taken as illustrative only and not be taken in any limiting sense.

What is claimed is:

1. Apparatus for continually sequentially opening and filling flattened flexible packaging bags from a stacked and wicket held supply of bags, each bag having a lower ply provided with wicket holes and an upper ply clear of the wicket holes in the lower ply, comprising, in combination,

a. an apparatus frame having an aft end and a fore end,

b. a substantially horizontal top plate on said frame adapted to support the stacked supply of bags and a product filled top bag on the stacked supply of bags,

c. a wicket having a horizontal center portion arranged and disposed to exert bearing pressure downward on the lower plies of the stacked supply of bags through contact with the upper surface of the lower ply of the top bag on the stacked supply of bags at a locus clear of the wicket holes in the bags, an upwardly extending shoulder at each end of said horizontal center portion, and a leg element extending substantially vertically downward from each shoulder through and subtending beyond the wicket holes in each bag lower ply in the stacked supply of bags,

d. wicket socket means adjacent the top plate towards the aft end of the apparatus frame disposed to receive and hold substantially vertically portions of the wicket leg elements subtending the stacked supply of bags,

e. a housing pivotally supported on horizontal trunnion means at the aft end of the apparatus frame extending towards the fore end of the frame and adapted to move pivotally vertically on the trunnion means with respect to the frame,

f. air supply means mounted in the housing having an air stream discharge directed towards the fore end of the apparatus frame,

g. duct means communicating with the air stream discharge adapted to direct an air stream from the air supply means into a bag on top of the stacked supply to inflate said bag, said duct means bearing on at least a portion of the wicket to maintain substantially constant downward vertical pressure thereon, and

h. a substantially flat platen on top of the housing means adapted to support an unpackaged product.

2. Apparatus for continually sequentially opening and filling flattened flexible packaging bags from a stacked and wicket held supply of bags, each bag having a lower ply provided with wicket holes and an upper ply clear of the wicket holes in the lower ply, comprising, in combination,

a. an apparatus frame having an aft end and a fore end,

b. a substantially horizontal top plate on said frame adapted to support the stacked supply of bags and a product filled top bag on the stacked supply of bags,

0. a wicket having a horizontal center portion arranged and disposed to exert bearing pressure downward on the lower plies of the stacked supply of bags through contact with the upper surface of the lower ply of the top bag on the stacked supply of bags at a locus clear of the wicket holes in the bags, an upwardly extending shoulder at each end of said horizontal center portion, and a leg element, extending substantially vertically through and subtending beyond the wicket holes in each bag lower ply in the stacked supply of bags,

d. wicket socket means adjacent the top plate towards the aft end of the apparatus frame disposed to receive and hold substantially vertically portions of the wicket leg elements subtending the stacked supply of bags,

e. a housing pivotally supported on horizontal trunnion means at the aft end of the apparatus frame extending towards the fore end of the frame and adapted to move pivotally vertically on the trunnion means with respect to the frame,

f. air blower means mounted in the housing having an air stream discharge directed towards the fore end of the apparatus frame,

g. duct means communicating with the air stream dis charge adapted to direct an air stream from the blower means into a bag on top of the stacked supply to inflate said bag, said duct means bearing on at least a portion of the wicket to maintain substantially constant downward vertical pressure thereon,

h. a substantially flat platen on top of the housing means adapted to support an unpackaged product,

i. product guide means mounted on the top platen of the housing means adapted to enter part way into an open bag on top of the stacked supply of bags upon impingement of a product thereon and thereby guide said product impinging thereon from the platen into the open bag, and

j. conveyor means disposed between the top plate and the fore end of the apparatus arranged and disposed to accept a product filled bag from the top of the stacked supply of bags and to convey said product filled bag from the apparatus.

3. Apparatus according to claim 1 wherein the wicket is provided with cutting edges disposed towards the aft end of the apparatus and located on the wicket leg elements above said horizontal center portion of the wicket.

4. Apparatus according to claim 1 wherein the wicket socket means are canted from the vertical to dispose the top of the wicket towards the aft end of the apparatus and the wicket leg elements portions subtending the stacked and wicket held supply of bags towards the fore end of the apparatus whereby the stacked supply of bags is imbricated.

5. Apparatus according to claim 1 wherein the pivotally supported housing mounting the air supply means and the duct means is provided with force pressure means operably connected to said housing adapted to counterbalance the cantilevered dead weight of said housing on its trunnion means and to maintain substantially constant bearing pressure by the duct means on said portion of the wicket.

6. Apparatus according to claim 1 in combination with lifting cam means arranged between the apparatus frame and the rotatably supported housing and operable to raiseand secure the housing on its trunnion means clear of its operating position to permit loading the apparatus with a supply of stacked bags.

7. Apparatus according to claim 2 wherein the wicket is provided with cutting edges disposed towards the aft end of the apparatus and located on the wicket leg elements above said horizontal center portion of the wicket.

8. Apparatus according to claim 2 wherein the wicket socket means are canted from the vertical to dispose the top of the wicket towards the aft end of the apparatus and the wicket leg elements portions subtending the stacked and wicket held supply of bags towards the fore end of the apparatus whereby the stacked supply of bags is imbricated.

9. Apparatus according to claim 2 wherein the pivotally supported housing mounting the air blower means and the duct means is provided with force pressure means operably connected between said housing and the apparatus frame, adapted to counterbalance the cantilevered dead weight of said housing on its trunnion means and to maintain substantially constant bearing pressure by the duct means on said portion of the wicket.

10. Apparatus according to claim 2 in combination with lifting cam means arranged between the apparatus frame and the rotatably supported housing and operable to raise and secure the housing on its trunnion means clear of its operating position to permit loading the apparatus with a supply of stacked bags.

11. Apparatus according to claim 2 wherein the product guide means mounted on the top platen of the housing means is provided with first pivot means to permit pivotal movement of the product guide means to wards the fore end of the apparatus into an inflated open bag on top of the stacked supply of bags and, simultaneously, to permit outward expansion of the product guide means in a pivotal substantially horizontal movement while a product being impinged thereon moves through the product guide means into the in flated open bag.

12. Apparatus according to claim ll provided with second pivot means to permit pivotal vertical expansion of the product guide means while a product being impinged thereon moves through the product guide means and into the inflated bag.

13. Apparatus according to claim 2 wherein the conveyor means comprises a multiplicity of rotatable rollers mounted transversely in the apparatus frame.

14. Apparatus according to claim 13 in which said rollers are selectably removeable from the frame. 

1. Apparatus for continually sequentially opening and filling flattened flexible packaging bags from a stacked and wicket held supply of bags, each bag having a lower ply provided with wicket holes and an upper ply clear of the wicket holes in the lower ply, comprising, in combination, a. an apparatus frame having an aft end and a fore end, b. a substantially horizontal top plate on said frame adapted to support the stacked supply of bags and a product filled top bag on the stacked supply of bags, c. a wicket having a horizontal center portion arranged and disposed to exert bearing pressure downward on the lower plies of the stacked supply of bags through contact with the upper surface of the lower ply of the top bag on the stacked supply of bags at a locus clear of the wicket holes in the bags, an upwardly extending shoulder at each end of said horizontal center portion, and a leg element extending substantially vertically downward from each shoulder through and subtending beyond the wicket holes in each bag lower ply in the stacked supply of bags, d. wicket socket means adjacent the top plate towards the aft end of the apparatus frame disposed to receive and hold substantially vertically portions of the wicket leg elements subtending the stacked supply of bags, e. a housing pivotally supported on horizontal trunnion means at the aft end of the apparatus frame extending towards the fore end of the frame and adapted to move pivotally vertically on the trunnion means with respect to the frame, f. air supply means mounted in the housing having an air stream discharge directed towards the fore end of the apparatus frame, g. duct means communicating with the air stream discharge adapted to direct an air stream from the air supply means into a bag on top of the stacked supply to inflate said bag, said duct means bearing on at least a portion of the wicket to maintain substantially constant downward vertical pressure thereon, and h. a substantially flat platen on top of the housing means adapted to support an unpackaged product.
 2. Apparatus for continually sequentially opening and filling flattened flexible packaging bags from a stacked and wicket held supply of bags, each bag having a lower ply provided with wicket holes and an upper ply clear of the wicket holes in the lower ply, comprising, in combination, a. an apparatus frame having an aft end and a fore end, b. a substantially horizontal top plate on said frame adapted to support the stacked supply of bags and a product filled top bag on the stacked supply of bags, c. a wicket having a horizontal center portion arranged and disposed to exert bearing pressure downward on the lower plies of the stacked supply of bags through contact with the upper surface of the lower ply of the top bag on the stacked supply of bags at a locus clear of the wicket holes in the bags, an upwardly extending shoulder at each end of said horizontal center portion, and a leg element, extending substantially vertically through and subtending beyond the wicket holes in each bag lower ply in the stacked supply of bags, d. wicket socket means adjacent the top plate towards the aft end of the apparatus frame disposed to receive and hold substantially vertically portions of the wicket leg elements subtending the stacked supply of bags, e. a housing pivotally supported on horizontal trunnion means at the aft end of the apparatus frame extending towards the fore end of the frame and adapted to move pivotally vertically on the trunnion means with respect to the frame, f. air blower means mounted in the housing having an air stream discharge directed towards the fore end of the apparatus frame, g. duct means communicating with the air stream discharge adapted to direct an air stream from the blower means into a bag on top of the stacked supply to inflate said bag, said duct means bearing on at least a portion of the wicket to maintain substantially constant downward vertical pressure thereon, h. a substantially flat platen on top of the housing means adapted to support an unpackaged product, i. product guide means mounted on the top platen of the housing means adapted to enter part way into an open bag on top of the stacked supply of bags upon impingement of a product thereon and thereby guide said product impinging thereon from the platen into the open bag, and j. conveyor means disposed between the top plate and the fore end of the apparatus arranged and disposed to accept a product filled bag from the top of the stacked supply of bags and to convey said product filled bag from the apparatus.
 3. Apparatus according to claim 1 wherein the wicket is provided with cutting edges disposed towards the aft end of the apparatus and located on the wicket leg elements above said horizontal center portion of the wicket.
 4. Apparatus according to claim 1 wherein the wicket socket means are canted from the vertical to dispose the top of the wicket towards the aft end of the apparatus and the wicket leg elements portions subtending the stacked and wicket held supply of bags towards the fore end of the apparatus whereby the stacked supply of bags is imbricated.
 5. Apparatus according to claim 1 wherein the pivotally supported housing mounting the air supply means and the duct means is provided with force pressure means operably connected to said housing adapted to counterbalance the cantilevered dead weight of said housing on its trunnion means and to maintain substantially constant bearing pressure by the duct means on said portion of the wicket.
 6. Apparatus according to claim 1 in combination with lifting cam means arranged between the apparatus frame and the rotatably supported housing and operable to raise and secure the housing on its trunnion means clear of its operating position to permit loading the apparatus with a supply of stacked bags.
 7. Apparatus according to claim 2 wherein the wicket is provided with cutting edges disposed towards the aft end of the apparatus and located on the wicket leg elements above said horizontal center portion of the wicket.
 8. Apparatus according to claim 2 wherein the wicket socket means are canted from the vertical to dispose the top of the wicket towards the aft end of the apparatus and the wicket leg elements portions subtending the stacked and wicket held supply of bags towards the fore end of the apparatus whereby the stacked supply of bags is imbricated.
 9. Apparatus according to claim 2 wherein the pivotally supported housing mounting the air blower means and the duct means is provided with force pressure means operably connected between said housing and tHe apparatus frame, adapted to counterbalance the cantilevered dead weight of said housing on its trunnion means and to maintain substantially constant bearing pressure by the duct means on said portion of the wicket.
 10. Apparatus according to claim 2 in combination with lifting cam means arranged between the apparatus frame and the rotatably supported housing and operable to raise and secure the housing on its trunnion means clear of its operating position to permit loading the apparatus with a supply of stacked bags.
 11. Apparatus according to claim 2 wherein the product guide means mounted on the top platen of the housing means is provided with first pivot means to permit pivotal movement of the product guide means towards the fore end of the apparatus into an inflated open bag on top of the stacked supply of bags and, simultaneously, to permit outward expansion of the product guide means in a pivotal substantially horizontal movement while a product being impinged thereon moves through the product guide means into the inflated open bag.
 12. Apparatus according to claim 11 provided with second pivot means to permit pivotal vertical expansion of the product guide means while a product being impinged thereon moves through the product guide means and into the inflated bag.
 13. Apparatus according to claim 2 wherein the conveyor means comprises a multiplicity of rotatable rollers mounted transversely in the apparatus frame.
 14. Apparatus according to claim 13 in which said rollers are selectably removeable from the frame. 